All Are Welcome, ELW 641 (verse 5)
Devotion
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In this song we proclaim to one another in no uncertain terms that all are welcome. God cares for the poor, for children, for for the stranger. We receive Christ in the neighbor who "bears the image of God's face." We often look at others, at those different from us with suspicion. We compare. We worry about our own standing in the community. Sadly, we often try to judge who is worthy of God's love and who isn't. We do this in our families, at work, even in church. Who belongs to a community, and who remains outside? Who is in and who is out? We tend to fellowship only with folks who think like us.
God goes beyond all the dividing walls we erect. The Spirit blows down every barrier we create. In baptism God brings us together and holds all of us together. So how will we look at ourselves and other people now in light of our baptism?
Prayer
In baptism, by water and your Word you name us and claim us, and call us your daughters and sons. You make us heirs of your promise and servants of all. Amen.